Graduation Announcements

In August 2011, I earned my Masters degree, yay! Commencement was held December 17, 2011. As commencement approached, I started to receive advertisements for graduation announcements. Of course, they cost an arm and a leg so I decided I would make my own. I have to confess, making these took me a long time. Not because it was difficult but what they represent...accomplishing a goal. Implementation!? Following through!? Doing what you set out to do?! At times, those things can be daunting even though it is all wonderful and fulfilling.

Back to the invitations...I found an inspiration, a black and white color palette and adapted it from there.

Inspiration

I love the simplicity of this inspiration piece. However, I wanted to add some flair and integrate University colors. I began with purchasing a premade set of blank, black cards with white envelopes. You can make the cards and envelopes yourself but I wanted to save a little time.

Pockets:
I cut a 1" piece from one side of the black card, rounded the corners and adhered the two sides to create the pocket for the insert. I was able to find the exact "Congratulations" paper at the craft store. It took less than 2-12 X 12 sheets for 10 cards. I cut the paper into 2" pieces. I wrapped the Congratulations paper around the pocket making sure the ends overlapped in the back before I glued anything down. If you gently crease the sides as the paper wraps, it makes lining up the adhesive on the front section easier. Next, I put adhesive on the section of congratulations paper that would go across the front of the pocket, lined it up and put it in place. After wrapping the sides around the back, I glued down one end and then glued the overlapping piece in place.

Graduation Caps:
I already had a graduation cap stamp on hand and was happy to finally have a use for it.  I started by stamping the cap on a piece of white cardstock, which I cut down to the size I wanted (making sure to round the corners). Next, I measured the piece of cardstock and cut the amount I needed. At this time I also measured and cut black cardstock for the background of the caps. Stamping the caps was fun and easy....little bit of ink, stamp and repeat. (Cut a few extra pieces just in case.) I found some great ribbon that sported my University colors but didn't want it to fold as it went through a hole so I devised a new plan. Using a small rectangular punch, I punched two overlapping holes to string the ribbon through. The ribbon was able to lay flat and looked great! After stamping the caps, gluing together the white and black cardstock pieces, I strung the ribbon being sure to have enough to overlap on the back of the pocket just like the congratulations paper. I glued the two ends, one to the pocket and then the overlapping piece. It looked great but the cap was sliding the length of the ribbon on the front so I glued the top and bottom edges to the pocket on the rest of the pockets before gluing the ribbon on the back side. This made lining up the caps very easy!

Inserts:
I cut white cardstock 1" smaller than the black pocket so the card would slid in and out easily (rounding corners again). For the ribbon pull, I used silver brads I had on hand. I love the look it gives and it's an easy alternative to a tie as in the inspiration piece. It took some time to decide what I wanted to have written on the insert but once I figured it out, I typed, printed, and cut it to the right size. All of a sudden, I was faced with a problem. White on white....bland, boring. My neighbor came to the rescue. She gave me some silver cardstock, PERFECT! So, I glued the message onto the silver cardstock and glued that to the white insert page. There was still some "dead space" at the bottom of the insert. What to do? What to do? I know! Cuttlebug! I used a border embossing folder to add texture and make the dead space purposeful.

Pocket and Insert

Finally Done!

In the end, I love the results and these really were fun to make. I wish the pictures showed the embossing better but that's what I get for taking pictures, stuffing envelopes and mailing before checking how the pictures turned out. Live and learn!